Tag Archives: Lynn (MA)

Common Knowledge

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Posted by on in collaborating, Community, impediments, Inspiration, Personal Values, Social, Striving

February 17, 2022- The small group of men, standing in front of the national headquarters of General Electric Company, in Boston, were raising the issues faced by the rank and file at the GE plant in nearby Lynn, as a result of the company’s plan to break into three publicly-held entities: Aviation, Healthcare and Energy. The protesters noted that the restructuring would result in the loss of 80 jobs at the Lynn plant. GE management says the 80 workers would be given opportunities for other work at the plant, or at facilities nearby.

My father devoted thirty-six years of his life to G.E., as an aircraft mechanic and middle manager. He did not live to enjoy the retirement to which he looked forward. He also saw the false flag of state politicians, touting a “Massachusetts Miracle”. Lynn, and the gritty suburbs just to the north of Boston, did not experience such a Renaissance- largely due to prioritization of new construction on vacant land, west of the Metro area, over the renovation and rebuilding of decrepit factory properties, in industrial suburbs like Chelsea, Everett, Winthrop and Somerville (which has experienced a rejuvenation, over the past fifteen years).

Dad, and most of the people I knew, during my own brief stint at GE Riverworks prior to joining the Army, were plainspoken folks, who also had solid native intelligence about making better products and putting company resources to wider use. Some in upper management listened, but most ignored “the help”. It is that attitude which has contributed to the unease, and anger, that has surfaced among blue collar workers and their families, for the past fifty years-reaching its zenith during the past decade.

A goodly amount of any human disaffection fades, when the ideas and innovations put forth by the workforce, in any organization, are heard, studied and taken seriously. Implementation would go a long way, towards both restoring worker morale and improving corporate performance. The group gathered in Boston, in fact, had several suggestions for the company’s efforts, in all three areas. Aviation workers are concerned with healthcare improvement and with clean energy. I can only hope that the leadership of business and industry gives their workers a clean bill of dignity, going forward.

Unk

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Posted by on in Family, Inspiration, Personal Values, Striving

February 11, 2022- Tim Lynch was the biggest kid in the room, and lit up that room as soon as he entered. He was one of those who held that “Close only counts in hand grenades and horseshoes”-with the caveat that no one ever even think of bringing the former anywhere near his place. Horseshoes, the game, was a different matter, and each Labour Day weekend, for at least the seven years of my adolescence, the extended family found its way to the backyard of Tim and Margie Lynch. I got close several times, and may have even landed a ringer, or two, but Uncle Timmy almost always piled his shoes around the stake.

He was a classic Irish boyo, roguish in a way, but always a man’s man. He knew the value of hard work, and gave his best in his chosen occupation. Once the party started, though, Tim gave that his best as well. Whether in the small backyard in Lynn, Massachusetts or at the beach in either Seabrook or Salisbury, any time spent with Uncle Tim and Aunt Margie was the highest form of memorable.

He was also a man of character. When one of my cousins made snarky comments about another relative, Tim shot the kid down, posthaste. His love for his family was never more clear, on the day when one of his daughters and her little family were left homeless, after one of the worst apartment fires in Lynn’s history. When it was necessary to crowd into the house for a while, that’s what was done. The shattering moment of his beloved wife’s untimely passing, in 2000, brought a change in his demeanor, and the parties became quieter, less frequent-but he never lost his love of life.

Timothy D. Lynch was one of the last of my paternal uncles by marriage. He left the Blessed Mess behind, very early this morning, but he also left us with two sons and two daughters -having taught them to be nobody’s fools and to carry themselves proudly. He taught his nieces and nephews to never look down their noses at anyone-especially not at ourselves. Rest in Paradise, Unk.